At The Grotto
by Bebop Eriks
Summary: Hiei's been alone, without her, but he thinks he doesn't need her anymore. He last saw her backside, as she walked away from Kurama and himself. But what happens when a dream turns out to be a little more real than he thought.


She smiled and hid behind another tree, moving quickly behind a new one with every step that he took. She watched him move foreword and followed, although sometimes you just had to guess where he would land next. His movements were fast and almost impossible to track. He wasn't even moving as fast as he could on this particular sunny day. He was in no hurry, and he was unaware that he was being followed through the forest. The trees were big and scattered around, leaving small patches for shrubs and smaller plants to grow and wild animals to graze. On this day, a lazy summer day, Hiei was on his way to a grotto, not just any grotto, but the grotto that made a home on the shores of Lake Kirei. His grotto. As he traveled quickly and swiftly he thought of the grotto, and how much that he had missed it. He hadn't been there in years. He had no desire. He shut out the memories that he didn't want to remember. He continued on his path. The area was beautiful. Once you were closer to the lake you could see several banks that were sandy, a perfect place to relax. There were grassy meadows that were carefully placed to create an almost uncanny harmony. It was a dream, heaven on earth, a tranquil place. A place that Hiei had never shared with anyone. Except her.  
  
She continued to follow him, she knew that he was off to train more, although there was little he could do on his own anymore, he needed an opponent to practice on, to work out the very few and very little kinks in his performance. He prided himself on his speed and abilities, and she knew that. She knew however of his few weaknesses. She laughed at the thought of him actually having weaknesses. Hiei had planned for this day to be somewhat relaxing, he planned to train, then catch some lunch in the lake, followed by more training, then sleep. He had no desire to be bothered or disturbed, although the choice was not his. He arrived at the lake, stopped and looked around. The birds make their music, and he listened, the smaller animals were eating their grasses and shrubs. The bugs could be heard buzzing in his ears, as if they were in his head, trying to escape. The flowers were almost every color that could be found in nature. Colors from a subtle yellow or blue, to the fiery darkness of a red or ravaging orange. He wasn't one for flowers, but he knew Kurama would love them. Not even Kurama knew about this location, although he should. He should have known about it, he should have been there when she left.  
  
"Damn it," he said under his breath. He didn't want to think about it, about her, about anything. He wanted to train. He wanted his memories of her dead. Why should he have to be reminded of her, she was the one who left. Angry at the thought, Hiei focused his anger on a nearby tree. It fell apart moments later, piece by piece. Hiei put his sword back into it's sheath. He was already in a bad mood and the day was still young. He gave the grotto and lake another glace around then took off his shirt and stepped into the water. It was cold, but comfortable. It had an exciting crystal blue color. You could see anything and everything that was swimming around. A few little fish were swimming near the shore, only being fish and not really realizing who Hiei was, they decided to nibble on his toes. Hiei looked down and just laughed, something he rarely did. It reminded him of Kuwabara in the Dark Tournament. Kuwabara being the fish of course, blindly attacking things so powerful and so large when he was only a fraction of what they were. His next thought was of Yukina, and how that blundering idiot had tried to impress her with everything and anything he could. "I'll kill that bastard if he even thinks about touching her..." Hiei said, but his sentence was cut short by a much bigger fish nibbling on his toes. Caught off guard by the daringness of the fish, he moved backwards and fell into the water.   
  
"Stupid fish!" he said again out loud to himself. He got up, and looked at the water. The fish were gone. He'd get his revenge when it was time for lunch, and this time he would be biting them. Lost again in thought, paying no attention to his surroundings, Hiei daydreamed. It was something he'd never do if there was an enemy near by, or anyone at all near by for that fact. He didn't know she was there, he couldn't sense her power at all. For her it was fairly easy to hid, she just had to mask it. All experienced fighters had ways to hid their spirit energy, it was just a matter of finding out how. She looked at him as he was lost in his thoughts. She began to recall on her own memories, on her own thoughts. She remembered what Hiei had been trying to forget, the day she left. Only, she knew the entire story, she knew the part she didn't tell him. She couldn't tell him, and she didn't on that day. She sighed and leaned against a tree then continued to watch him.  
  
Hiei was lost in all thoughts. He thought about anything and everything, one thing led to another. He just let his mind wander, there was no need to burden it now with obscure thoughts. He felt that it was time to give his mind and body a rest, to give it a break that it truly deserved. He was strong, both mentally and psychically, but everyone has their breaking point. He just hadn't reached his yet, he had no intention of ever finding it. After what seemed like eternity, he stirred, leaving his thoughts in his mind and coming back to reality.  
  
He looked around, suddenly aware that he was being watched. He didn't see anything or anyone, but he knew that someone was there. She herself had stirred, and realized that he knew she was there, only he didn't know it was her. Hiei continued to look around, then he focused on one spot. He saw her, dressed in a black tank top and black pants accented with a blue sash around her waist. Her dark maroon hair blowing in the wind. Then she was gone. He whispered her name then thought, no, she wasn't really there, she had never really been there, it was only his mind playing tricks on him. He couldn't feel anyone or anything around him, and he knew if she were there he could find her. Even if she suppressed her power, he could still find her. He walked over to the tree where he thought she was. Nothing. There were no foot prints, no evidence that she had been there. He turned away, but as he turned he saw something in the corner of his eye. On a nearby tree. Yes, there was something on the tree. He turned quickly and saw a tiny blue ribbon pinned to the tree with a knie. Her hair ribbon, and her dagger, the dagger that he had given her. The dagger that he had given her on their...  
  
CRACK!  
  
He heard the thunder crack as he awoken suddenly. He sat up quickly, his body sweating with the heat of the night and the dampness of the raging storm. He could see the lighting flash from his bed as he looked out the window. The thunderbolts cracked, although none as loud as the one that woke him from the dream. He remembered the dream. The dream of the grotto and the lake. Of her. He got up quickly to get a glass of water from the kitchen. He pushed the dream out of his head and out of his thoughts. He walked into the kitchen and turned on the light. On the table, beside an already poured glass of ice water was her blue ribbon, tied to her dagger. 


End file.
